PARIS, France – Following Cambodia’s move to engage Thailand in a “compulsory conciliation mechanism,” Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sihasak Phuangketkeow, met with the nation’s international legal advisory team at the Royal Thai Embassy in Paris to discuss the matter. The meeting took place during the minister’s visit to attend the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting. It follows Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet’s submission of a letter to Thailand and the United Nations Secretary-General to initiate a compulsory conciliation process under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Under the UNCLOS framework, a five-member conciliation commission must be constituted, with each country appointing two conciliators, who will then jointly select a fifth member to serve as chairman. The discussions aimed to determine Thailand’s proactive stance in addressing the maritime dispute and to outline procedures under the UNCLOS compulsory conciliation framework, for which Thailand has been preparing. Prior to his departure to Paris, Sihasak chaired a meeting of the committee tasked with addressing the Thailand-Cambodia overlapping claims on May 29. The meeting brought together relevant Thai agencies to coordinate and establish an integrated framework for joint operations. (TNA)
